Name: Vegan Pepperoni Pizza Recipe
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 35 min
Yield: 6 or 2 Large Pizzas
Cuisine: Caribbean
Ingredients: 2 cups All-Purpose Flour, plus 1/4 cup extra flour for forming the dough; 2 teaspoons Kosher Salt; 3.5 grams Active Yeast; 100 ml Olive Oil; 1 cup Ice Water; 2 tablespoons Honey; 2 teaspoons Dried Italian Seasoning, optional; Optional: 2 tablespoons Semolina Flour, for dusting if using a tray.

Aerial shot of Vegan pepperoni pizza on wooden background

It's pizza we crave. It's pizza we love! So what's better than a saucy, salty, gooey, hot slice of pepperoni pizza? All your friends and family will be raving about a Vegan Pepperoni Pizza made from scratch in your kitchen. The handmade crispy crust is the show's star, using only six simple ingredients, all-purpose flour, active yeast, honey, semolina, salt & olive oil. The fresh tomato sauce contains San Marzano crushed tomatoes, a pinch of sugar, salt, fresh basil & oregano. And it's all topped with a soy-free vegan four cheese Italian blend cheese from Daiya Foods that are made with chickpea protein for a nicely melted texture & taste. Plant-based spicy pepperoni and a sprinkling of sea salt and crushed red chili flakes to finish this pizza off.

A pizza stone is a key to helping create that ever so delicious crispy crust. If you're not in possession of a pizza stone, you can always use a cast iron pan or a sheet pan in place of the pizza stone. All methods will be listed below. Then, with zero cholesterol and 15 grams of protein per serving, grab a glass of your favorite Italian wine & start cooking. Mangiamo!

* Tip, the pizza dough is at its best when fermented & rested in the fridge overnight. You can still make the day off with a minimum resting time of 4 hours.

Equipment Needed

Fine Mesh Strainer

Large Cast Iron Skillet

Oven

Whisk

Author: Jennifer Dodd

Prep Time

20 mins

Cook Time

15 mins

Total Time

35 mins

Serves

6 or 2 Large Pizzas

Ingredients

Pizza Dough

2 cups All-Purpose Flour, plus 1/4 cup extra flour for forming the dough
2 teaspoons Kosher Salt
3.5 grams Active Yeast
100 ml Olive Oil
1 cup Ice Water
2 tablespoons Honey
2 teaspoons Dried Italian Seasoning, optional
Optional: 2 tablespoons Semolina Flour, for dusting if using a tray.

Pizza Sauce

1 (8 oz) tin San Marzano Crushed Tomatoes or any other high-quality tomatoes
2 tablespoons Granulated Sugar
1 teaspoon Kosher Salt
2 teaspoons Fresh Oregano, chopped
2 teaspoons Fresh Basil, chopped

Vegan Pepperoni Pizza Assembly

36 slices Vegan Pepperoni
2 (200 g) packages, Vegan Daiya Italian 4 Cheese Blend, or any other vegan cheese
1/4 teaspoon Sea Salt
1/4 teaspoon Crushed Red Chili Flakes *Optional
2 tablespoons Semolina Flour
2 balls of Pizza Dough
1 recipe Pizza Sauce

Instructions

Pizza Dough

In a stand mixer, add the water, yeast & honey into the mixing bowl.

Stir with a small whisk or fork & let sit for 5 minutes until foamy

Attach the dough hook to the mixer & turn it onto a low speed

Add in the flour, salt, olive oil & optional Italian seasoning, mix on low until flour is incorporated, scraping the sides with a silicone spatula.

Turn the mixer onto medium-high speed & continue to knead the dough until smooth for 5 minutes.

Once dough is kneaded, remove the dough from the bowl & place onto a medium-sized cutting board.

Cut the dough into two equal portions & form both into balls by tucking & rolling the dough into itself.

Line a sheet tray with a silicone baking mat or parchment paper.

Place the dough balls onto the lined tray & rub all sides of the dough with the remainder of the olive oil.

Cover the dough with cling wrap & let rest in the fridge overnight or in a warm, dark & dry place on the kitchen counter for a minimum of 4 hours.

Pizza Sauce

Using a fine mesh strainer, strain the excess juice from the tined tomatoes, result is to have a less watery tomato sauce.

Once strained, add the tomatoes into a medium-sized bowl & add the salt, sugar, chopped basil & oregano. Stir with a spoon to mix everything. Set aside.

Vegan Pepperoni Pizza Assembly

Pre-heat oven to 500 degrees Fahrenheit

Place pizza stone or cast iron pan into the oven into the center rack removing any oven racks above, allow to heat up for 15 minutes.

While the oven is pre-heating, remove the pizza dough from the fridge & bring it to room temperature.

Clean & lightly flour a space on the countertop, add the dough one ball at a time onto the counter & lightly flour the dough.

Flatten the dough one ball at a time using the palms of your hands into a rough circle. Sprinkle the back of a sheet tray with half the semolina flour. Pick up the dough & using the knuckles of both hands 2 inches from the edge. Turning and stretch the dough in a circular motion, reasonably quickly until the dough has stretched onto 12inches in diameter or roughly the size of your pizza stone or cast iron pan.

Once shaped, place the dough onto the semolina-coated sheet tray.

Assemble the pizzas one at a time by spreading half the sauce onto the dough, add half the cheese & top with evenly spread out slices of pepperoni.

Open the oven & use the sheet tray to gently shake & carefully slide the pizza onto the pizza stone or into the cast iron pan. You may need to stretch & adjust the pizza into the cast iron pan to fit if it didn't land perfectly into the pan. Take extra care as the oven will be extremely hot.

If using a sheet tray, place the tray into the oven.

Bake for 8-12 minutes until the vegan cheese is melted & the edges are golden brown. Additionally, you can lift a pizza corner with a spatula to check the bottom is cooked through and golden.

Remove from the oven onto a large cutting board to cool down. Repeat method with the second pizza.

Slice each pizza into eight slices, serve on the cutting board, or place onto a large plate. Finish with sea salt and chili flakes.

Enjoy & have another slice. You've earned it!